Thread: 1084 Steel for razors?

You really can't go wrong with 1084, ESPECIALLY if you are doing your own HT and don't have an oven. It fairly shallow hardening, but in thinner cross sections, it does not absolutely require the fast quenchant like 1095 nor does it require a good soak at a tightly controlled temperature like O1 does to get that last bit of performance. The classic starting point for 084 is 1500/400. That will give you 61Rc minimum if done right. If you plan to HT in a forge, I would recommend not only a thermocouple but a piece of black iron pipe to use as a muffle.

With the exception of the grind/ blade edge how close do get the rest of the razor to final shape before heat treat? Like should everything else pretty much be exactly how I want it or should I leave some extra metal to clean up after treating?

Originally Posted by NittanyGator

With the exception of the grind/ blade edge how close do get the rest of the razor to final shape before heat treat? Like should everything else pretty much be exactly how I want it or should I leave some extra metal to clean up after treating?

In that aspect too, it depends a bit what you are doing and why . But when using plain carbon steel like 1084 and use a forge to heat treat, I have found that the rest can have its final shape. In general I finish up to 220 grit, do heat treatment, and then clean up. It's only the blade itself where you need to leave enough thickness to really grind some steel.

Good thread. I'll be watching with interest as i get my forge up and running. Maybe i'll be making a razor sooner than expected!

This seems like it may be a stupid question then, but if i want jimping do i cut them before or after heat treat?

Jimping is done before heat treat, unless you are a masochist.

Originally Posted by NittanyGator

This seems like it may be a stupid question then, but if i want jimping do i cut them before or after heat treat?

Before. Drilling, filing, etc are all done before heat treatment.
That said, for some things, where I need a very gentle taper, or mild profile changes, I do those after heat treatment. Because those are things that are subtle, and go better when you remove little bits at a time. Doing that before heat treatment carries the risk of removing too much at once.

But in general, you do everything you can before heat treatment.

Originally Posted by Bruno

But in general, you do everything you can before heat treatment.

Right! Every year at Charlie's razor makers meet, it seems like we have at least one person straightening a tang or making some other relatively large adjustment after heat treating! The heat treat is a physical statement of how far along you are in your project. It seems that newbies are in too much of a hurry to reach that level of completion to really consider if they have done all they can before it.

I really wanted to do Charlie's meet this year but for one I cant swing it schedule wise, two I think I'd benefit from actually trying to make a few razors first.

Ordered 3 bars of steel today from Aldo, should be enough to do 18 razors.

Originally Posted by JDM61

You really can't go wrong with 1084, ESPECIALLY if you are doing your own HT and don't have an oven. It fairly shallow hardening, but in thinner cross sections, it does not absolutely require the fast quenchant like 1095 nor does it require a good soak at a tightly controlled temperature like O1 does to get that last bit of performance. The classic starting point for 084 is 1500/400. That will give you 61Rc minimum if done right. If you plan to HT in a forge, I would recommend not only a thermocouple but a piece of black iron pipe to use as a muffle.

Why haven't I ever seen any of your makings...or have I just missed them?